Continuing Care guidance for Scotland to support practice
The guidance to support the implementation of Continuing Care has been revised, updated and published by the Scottish Government (30 July).
In Scotland, young people have the right to stay with their foster carers, kinship carers or with their residential carers until their twenty-first birthday if this is right for them and what they want. This commitment is set out by the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014 and is designed to respond to the needs of young people and enable young people to be supported through the relationships they have developed so that they can live more independently when they feel ready.
National guidance is provided to help local authorities and other corporate parents in Scotland to understand their duties and responsibilities to implement this support; to assist people and organisations working with care experienced children and young people to help them to understand their rights, the choices they can make and the decisions they can make; and also to inform care leavers of their rights.
The revised guidance considers changes in policy and practice over the last decade and where there are gaps in implementation. It aims to:
- Highlight the legal and ethical responsibilities of local authorities regarding young people and care leavers
- Emphasise the duties of local authorities through Continuing Care
- Create a framework involving personal support for young people leaving care
- Reinforce a rights-based, person centred, trauma-informed approach while building on the fundamentals of Getting it right for every child (GIRFEC)
CELCIS has information materials to support conversations around Continuing Care for children, young people and carers